To defend Hoyas, ND needs patience

March 08, 2006|TOM NOIE Tribune Staff Writer

NEW YORK -- Extending its stay in midtown for more than the usual one game this week will first require Notre Dame to practice something today not common amid the Manhattan mayhem. Patience. Opening the 2006 Big East Tournament for No. 12 seed Notre Dame (15-12) means defending the Princeton offense of No. 5 Georgetown (19-8). The Hoyas operate with a series of perimeter passes and cuts across the lane, up and down the baseline and away from defenders. Just when teams think they have it solved, forward Jeff Green sheds his man for a lay-in, center Roy Hibbert carves some space for a dunk or guard Jonathan Wallace works free for a 3. Before opponents know it, they trail by five, six, seven points, which may as well be 20 against a team that shortens games by consistently limiting possessions and draining the 35-second shot clock. "When they dribble at you, you know they're going back-door," said Irish freshman guard Kyle McAlarney, a Staten Island, N.Y., native who hopes to enjoy his homecoming today at Madison Square Garden. "It's a tough offense to defend, but I think we're very capable of doing that." The teams have never met in the Big East Tournament. Notre Dame has won five of the last seven in the series, but has dropped two of the last three including an 85-82 double-overtime decision earlier this year in South Bend. Unlike previous conference postseasons, when the Irish played as if expectations might smother them before halftime, coach Mike Brey's bunch understands there is little on the line this week. The only way they go back to the NCAA Tournament for the first time in three seasons is if they do the unthinkable -- become the first team in Big East history to win four games in as many days. Though that seems far-fetched, Notre Dame may be the one team nobody in the league wants to meet, not after 10 conference losses by a combined 35 points has strengthened its resolve. Confidence, for the guys in the black and green jerseys, is high. "We know we're capable of playing with anybody," said senior tri-captain Chris Quinn. "We've just got to show it." Watching tape this week of the teams' mid-January meeting, Brey was struck by how different his guys looked then compared to the last few weeks of the regular season. Notre Dame trailed by as many as 15 and allowed five Hoyas to score double figures, including an 18-point, 13-rebound performance from Hibbert. The Irish were tentative early, then seemed to get rattled when it came time to make winning plays. Georgetown coach John Thompson III also has noticed that the Irish work with a new look, one that relies heavily on junior Russell Carter and has rediscovered how to get power forward Torin Francis to finish. "They are a different team," Thompson said. "Carter is being very aggressive (and) they are throwing it inside a little more to their big guys." Francis has saved his best basketball for now. He enjoyed four consecutive games of at least 10 rebounds, including two double-double efforts for points and rebounds. He will have his hands full today with the 7-foot-2 Hibbert, whose wingspan seems to extend forever. "He's big," Francis deadpanned. "I think maybe moving the ball, maybe getting him into foul trouble a little early can work to our advantage." Staying strong amid adversity also will help, and has the last week. In the final two regular-season wins over Providence and DePaul, Notre Dame played with a demeanor typically found in teams that dominate. The Irish have been loose, which has allowed them to stare at consecutive must-wins and succeed. "I want us to have that same frame of mind," Brey said. "I'm hopeful that maybe the karma's swinging a little bit." While the Irish plan to lean on the late-season success that helped get them to New York, the Hoyas seek to start fresh. Ranked No. 23 this week, Georgetown closed out the regular season by losing four of its final six. Today's matinee was mandatory after a stunning loss Saturday at South Florida, where a win would have handed Thompson's team a first-round bye. "We would have liked to have won that game and had (today) off, but we don't," Thompson said. "The mindset is the regular season's over." For one team, the fun is just beginning.